Do I need to report a positive Covid self-test in France?
These home tests are becoming more common and are available to buy in many large supermarkets until January 31
The price of self-tests is capped at €5.20 and they are not reimbursed by the French health insurance system
Sarayut Sridee / Shutterstock
Reader question: I have bought some home Covid testing kits from the supermarket as a precaution before I visit friends or go to social events. But I realised that I don’t know what I should do if I test positive with one. Do I need to report it somewhere?
The government advice states that if you get a positive result with a self-administered test, you should immediately take an antigen or PCR test in a laboratory or pharmacy in order to confirm it.
Read more:How to get a Covid test in France and when you have to pay
There is no legal obligation to report the result of your self-test, whether positive or negative. However, the government set up a website last June called Mon Auto Test for people to log the results of their self-tests.
They did this in order to better trace Covid cases.
However, this website appears to no longer be working, but it is not clear if it has been removed entirely or is just temporarily down.
An informal Twitter survey carried out earlier this week by Guillaume Rozier, the creator of the popular website Covidtracker.fr that provides data on the epidemic in France, shows that hardly any French people know about Mon Auto Test.
Of the more than 23,000 people who answered, only 2.8% said they had reported their self-test on the platform.
Where can I buy a self-test?
They have been available in many pharmacies around the country since early 2021. Since December 29, 2021, they have also been on sale in large supermarkets, and will remain in stock there until at least January 31.
How much do they cost?
The price of self-tests is capped at €5.20. They are not reimbursed by the French health insurance system.
They are given for free, up to a limit of 10 per month, to certain professionals, such as carers and home help and support services.
They are also given out for free at pharmacies to parents of children under the age of 12 who have been signalled as close contacts of someone with Covid.
Under newly introduced rules, school children under 12 who are identified as close contacts will not need to self-isolate, but will instead need to take three self-tests.
This is the same for school children over 12 who are fully vaccinated against Covid.
Read more:French Prime Minister relaxes school Covid testing measures
For everyone else over 12 who is fully vaccinated, they also do not need to self-isolate if they are a close contact if they take an antigen or PCR test, and then two self-tests two days and four days after their last contact with the person positive with Covid.
These two self-tests are available for free at pharmacies, but proof of being a close contact and the results of the first negative test are required.
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